Tried to explain TikTok’s marvellous appeal to my advisor (dont ask why) & I kept remembering one of the the most fertile imaginative tangents in my childhood was everyday daydreams of dancing to Govinda choreography. Perfect execution & in my everyday spaces lol.

I had a fairly repressed upbringing in terms of bodily expression & no privacy while sharing a bedroom with brother & grandma. Occasional bursts of dancing were limited to the bathroom. If I’d had TikTok you better believe it would be all the Kisi Disco Mein Jaayein UH-UH moves.

I keep looking for some writing/thought on imagination in childhood & why it always felt so vivid & rich compared to being an adult. Adult daydreaming sucks. Dont know how my flights of fancy these days all are aspirational career or home nonsense & so boring. Miss govinda days.

Anyway all this to say Indian TikTok offers such opportunity for people to imagine themselves as protagonists of their own fantasies & I envy it. The person I imagined grooving to Makhana on my school rooftop was not always a recognizable version of me & it feels like a loss.

Also this thread was triggered by this woman’s amazing verve & she deserves all the appreciation. https://mobile.twitter.com/panther_speaks/status/1266655049721266177